25 YEARS AGO - 1992

Investments in Mobile

In the section of the plant in Mobile that at the time belonged to Hüls, two important
production units were put into operation.

A new silane production unit came on stream in January, followed by an isophorone unit at the end of May. This was inaugurated in the presence of the governor of Alabama after a construction period of just 18 months—an investment of around US$ 100 million that created 90 jobs. Up until then, the Hüls isophorone products VESTANAT®, VESTAGON®, and VESTICOAT®, had been imported into the United States from Germany; now the U.S. market could be served faster and more directly.

1992 PROVIDED A FURTHER IMPORTANT MOMENTUM:

EXPANSION OF SILICA CAPACITY IN NORTH AMERICA

Production of hydrophobic AEROSIL® began at the Waterford plant of Degussa Corporation, which had meanwhile moved its registered office to New Jersey. Prior to this, hydrophilic AEROSIL® had initially been produced in test runs and the precise manufacturing conditions for hydrophobic AEROSIL® had been determined. In July 1992, the initial trials of AEROSIL® R 972 went over to application tests. The nearby General Electric Company finally received the first delivery of AEROSIL®.